In case you missed their excellent show back 8/21, Vektor is returning to the Riot Room on November 6th, a Tuesday! One of the best up and coming bands this century. You do NOT want to miss this! Opening the show are amazing dudes in Hellevate and Vanlade!
Note: It looks like Vektor is NOT headlining this show. They should still get a pretty nice set out of it, though. The headlining band is System Divide. I will save my commentary on them for myself.
Showing posts with label hellevate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hellevate. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Kreator -- Kansas City, MO -- Septembe 16th, 2012
This is the old-school heavy metal tour of the year for sure. Swallow
The Sun is old-school heavy (despite not being old), Accept was
old-school rocking, and Kreator was old-school brutality! Despite a few
sound issues for some of the bands, it was a solid night overall.
Hellevate opened the night as people were still coming in. They only had time for about four songs, but they made the most of it. The whole band is really animated, especially the vocalist. He reminds me of a young Bobby Blitz. The riffing was solid and they had a nice thick bass sound, but it all kinda went to moot because not a ton of the crowd was feeling them. Tonight was their album release show, too, so it kinda sucks they didn't get at least a bit longer. Great warm-up, though.
It was my first time seeing Swallow The Sun since they played with Soilwork, Darkane and Warbringer back in 2008. This band seems to get on really odd tours. But they were still really heavy. They played six songs, but only two of them had any clean vocals - they catered their set to appeal to the fans of this tour, obviously. When all the instruments just started riffing together in one of their painfully heavy and slow breakdowns, it was so awesome. Swallow The Sun here and then Katatonia a few days ago? I'm in melancholic death/doom heaven. Awesome.
Up next was the legendary Accept. "Legendary" is a fair title, because they've absolutely earned it. A very high energy performance from all members of the band, spot-on sound and great crowd interaction. They were good and loud without being overbearing. The lead guitars came through perfectly, especially during the solos. The new vocalist also sounded fantastic. The band didn't spend that long chatting up the crowd in between songs, but it's okay because they spent most of their time rocking out! Lots of singing along with them. Old-school awesome!
Kreator was very punishing and very brutal, but unfortunately the sound problems that had been reported for previous shows were prevalent here. About half of their set, I could barely hear the guitars when they weren't soloing. Fortunately, this didn't deter from the overall performance that much. Their mix of likable new songs and classic ones went over very well with the crowd and there were several large mosh and circle pits during their set. They unfortunately cut out Betrayer, but the rest of the set was the same. Mille's vocals were great and the whole band sounded awesome for being able to play so fast. If you see Kreator, expect to mosh!
Kreator:
Mars Mantra
Phantom Antichrist
From Flood Into Fire
Enemy Of God
Phobia
Hordes Of Chaos (A Necrologue To The Elite)
Civilization Collapse
Voices Of The Dead
Extreme Aggressions
People Of The Lie
Death To The World
Coma Of Souls/Endless Pain
Pleasure To Kill
The Patriarch/Violent Revolution
Flag Of Hate/Tormentor
Accept:
Hung, Drawn, and Quartered
Hellfire
Restless And Wild
Losers And Winners
Stalingrad
Shadow Soldiers
Pandemic
Breaker
Bucket Full Of Hate
Princess Of The Dawn
Up To The Limit
Teutonic Terror
Metal Heart
Fast As A Shark
Balls To The Wall
Swallow The Sun (I think):
Emerald Forest and the Blackbird
Hate, Lead the Way!
Psychopath's Lair
Cathedral Walls
New Moon
Swallow (Horror Pt. 1)
Kreator: 8/10
Accept: 8/10
Swallow The Sun: 8/10
Hellevate: 8/10
Hellevate opened the night as people were still coming in. They only had time for about four songs, but they made the most of it. The whole band is really animated, especially the vocalist. He reminds me of a young Bobby Blitz. The riffing was solid and they had a nice thick bass sound, but it all kinda went to moot because not a ton of the crowd was feeling them. Tonight was their album release show, too, so it kinda sucks they didn't get at least a bit longer. Great warm-up, though.
It was my first time seeing Swallow The Sun since they played with Soilwork, Darkane and Warbringer back in 2008. This band seems to get on really odd tours. But they were still really heavy. They played six songs, but only two of them had any clean vocals - they catered their set to appeal to the fans of this tour, obviously. When all the instruments just started riffing together in one of their painfully heavy and slow breakdowns, it was so awesome. Swallow The Sun here and then Katatonia a few days ago? I'm in melancholic death/doom heaven. Awesome.
Up next was the legendary Accept. "Legendary" is a fair title, because they've absolutely earned it. A very high energy performance from all members of the band, spot-on sound and great crowd interaction. They were good and loud without being overbearing. The lead guitars came through perfectly, especially during the solos. The new vocalist also sounded fantastic. The band didn't spend that long chatting up the crowd in between songs, but it's okay because they spent most of their time rocking out! Lots of singing along with them. Old-school awesome!
Kreator was very punishing and very brutal, but unfortunately the sound problems that had been reported for previous shows were prevalent here. About half of their set, I could barely hear the guitars when they weren't soloing. Fortunately, this didn't deter from the overall performance that much. Their mix of likable new songs and classic ones went over very well with the crowd and there were several large mosh and circle pits during their set. They unfortunately cut out Betrayer, but the rest of the set was the same. Mille's vocals were great and the whole band sounded awesome for being able to play so fast. If you see Kreator, expect to mosh!
Kreator:
Mars Mantra
Phantom Antichrist
From Flood Into Fire
Enemy Of God
Phobia
Hordes Of Chaos (A Necrologue To The Elite)
Civilization Collapse
Voices Of The Dead
Extreme Aggressions
People Of The Lie
Death To The World
Coma Of Souls/Endless Pain
Pleasure To Kill
The Patriarch/Violent Revolution
Flag Of Hate/Tormentor
Accept:
Hung, Drawn, and Quartered
Hellfire
Restless And Wild
Losers And Winners
Stalingrad
Shadow Soldiers
Pandemic
Breaker
Bucket Full Of Hate
Princess Of The Dawn
Up To The Limit
Teutonic Terror
Metal Heart
Fast As A Shark
Balls To The Wall
Swallow The Sun (I think):
Emerald Forest and the Blackbird
Hate, Lead the Way!
Psychopath's Lair
Cathedral Walls
New Moon
Swallow (Horror Pt. 1)
Kreator: 8/10
Accept: 8/10
Swallow The Sun: 8/10
Hellevate: 8/10
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Vektor -- Kansas City, MO -- August 21st, 2012
Shows like these are the reason I live for heavy metal. There is no
other place in the world that makes me happier than at a metal concert.
Surrounded by tons of my friends and a lot of fanatical Kansas City
metalheads, Vektor put on one of the best performances ever and have
solidified their place in the annals of heavy metal history. I could
honestly write like a 50-page paper of why heavy metal is the greatest
thing in the world right now because of this show, but I'll try and keep
it brief and just about the amazing show tonight.
The thing about Vektor is that they are definitely on the brink of exploding with popularity. When I saw them a few years back, at a free show nonetheless, there was barely anyone there for them. At this show, they had a big crowd (especially for a Tuesday night past midnight) and the numbers didn't dwindle at all throughout their set. I would say there was close to 100 people or so in this tiny bar and I don't think anyone left during their set, which was amazing. During Black Future, David broke a guitar string and left to repair it, so the rest of the band kinda jammed on stage for a good 10-15 minutes. The crowd was really understanding, and let out a cheer when they did a bit of The Number Of The Best and Scavenger Of Human Sorrow. After David got everything fixed, they ripped right back into the set. We missed a couple of Outer Isolation tracks because of the technical difficulty, but it seems to me we got a bit of an extended encore.
Black Future was, of course, a killer tune. I headbanged so much during each song that my neck broke, but none more so than for Hunger For Violence. You have to mosh to that song. It's not a suggestion, you HAVE to. And everyone should be familiar with how much I don't like to mosh. Tetrastructural Minds was insane and is still my favorite track off of Outer Isolation. I think they were originally going to end with Forests of Legend, but we wanted Accelerating Universe, so they played that! It was seriously insane. So much moshing and headbanging. They were about ready to pack up but everyone kept screaming. At this time it was like 12:50 AM so they got the okay for one more, and gave us Asteroid! Killer, killer stuff.
The sound was impeccable. I could really hear each instrument and the vocals perfectly, which was surprising because I was up right in the front. This is kinda weird I guess, but I absolutely love the thick bass sound that Vektor has, and it was mixed perfectly tonight. The bass on Cosmic Cortex makes me want to rip my face off. Erik and David hit every note perfectly, and Blake on the drums is one of the most talented drummers I've ever seen, especially with such a modest kit.
The dudes were really, really appreciative of the crowd. Huge crowd on a Tuesday night in Kansas City...who woulda thunk it? Erik came up to me afterwards and laughed at my shirt of choice for the show (my bright blue and yellow "Defend Pop Punk" New Found Glory shirt :3 ) and assured me that they'd be back in KC. YEAH!
Three amazing local bands opened the show. The first to play was Meat Shank and they play awesome death/thrash. Probably the best performance I've seen by them. They were a lot heavier than they've ever been, and there were lots of people headbanging to them. They did a killer cover of Slayer's Antichrist too. They need to play more!
Second band of the night was one of my new favorite power metal bands from the area, Alsatia. They have the riffs and solo of thrash metal, but the vocals and keyboards for Rhapsody-esque power metal. It mixed very well, and the guitarist and keyboardist do that Bodom-style solo battle type thing very well!
Direct support came from Hellevate who play like (and get the reaction of) a legendary thrash band. Seriously, the vocalist has the charisma and the pipes of Bobby Blitz, and their brand of thrash was so infectious that it kind of boggles my mind how they aren't the biggest band from the Midwest right now.
Man, I just can't get over how amazing this show was. Having a ton of my friends there, some who I haven't seen in a while, just added so much to the experience. I love heavy metal so much and I will love it more than anything else for the rest of my life.
Vektor: 10/10
Hellevate: 9/10
Alsatia: 8.5/10
Meat Shank: 8.5/10
Vektor:
Cosmic Cortex
Black Future
(long jam while David fixed his guitar)
Echoless Chamber
Tetrastructural Minds
Dark Nebula
Hunger For Violence
Deoxyribonucleic Acid
Accelerating Universe
Asteroid
The thing about Vektor is that they are definitely on the brink of exploding with popularity. When I saw them a few years back, at a free show nonetheless, there was barely anyone there for them. At this show, they had a big crowd (especially for a Tuesday night past midnight) and the numbers didn't dwindle at all throughout their set. I would say there was close to 100 people or so in this tiny bar and I don't think anyone left during their set, which was amazing. During Black Future, David broke a guitar string and left to repair it, so the rest of the band kinda jammed on stage for a good 10-15 minutes. The crowd was really understanding, and let out a cheer when they did a bit of The Number Of The Best and Scavenger Of Human Sorrow. After David got everything fixed, they ripped right back into the set. We missed a couple of Outer Isolation tracks because of the technical difficulty, but it seems to me we got a bit of an extended encore.
Black Future was, of course, a killer tune. I headbanged so much during each song that my neck broke, but none more so than for Hunger For Violence. You have to mosh to that song. It's not a suggestion, you HAVE to. And everyone should be familiar with how much I don't like to mosh. Tetrastructural Minds was insane and is still my favorite track off of Outer Isolation. I think they were originally going to end with Forests of Legend, but we wanted Accelerating Universe, so they played that! It was seriously insane. So much moshing and headbanging. They were about ready to pack up but everyone kept screaming. At this time it was like 12:50 AM so they got the okay for one more, and gave us Asteroid! Killer, killer stuff.
The sound was impeccable. I could really hear each instrument and the vocals perfectly, which was surprising because I was up right in the front. This is kinda weird I guess, but I absolutely love the thick bass sound that Vektor has, and it was mixed perfectly tonight. The bass on Cosmic Cortex makes me want to rip my face off. Erik and David hit every note perfectly, and Blake on the drums is one of the most talented drummers I've ever seen, especially with such a modest kit.
The dudes were really, really appreciative of the crowd. Huge crowd on a Tuesday night in Kansas City...who woulda thunk it? Erik came up to me afterwards and laughed at my shirt of choice for the show (my bright blue and yellow "Defend Pop Punk" New Found Glory shirt :3 ) and assured me that they'd be back in KC. YEAH!
Three amazing local bands opened the show. The first to play was Meat Shank and they play awesome death/thrash. Probably the best performance I've seen by them. They were a lot heavier than they've ever been, and there were lots of people headbanging to them. They did a killer cover of Slayer's Antichrist too. They need to play more!
Second band of the night was one of my new favorite power metal bands from the area, Alsatia. They have the riffs and solo of thrash metal, but the vocals and keyboards for Rhapsody-esque power metal. It mixed very well, and the guitarist and keyboardist do that Bodom-style solo battle type thing very well!
Direct support came from Hellevate who play like (and get the reaction of) a legendary thrash band. Seriously, the vocalist has the charisma and the pipes of Bobby Blitz, and their brand of thrash was so infectious that it kind of boggles my mind how they aren't the biggest band from the Midwest right now.
Man, I just can't get over how amazing this show was. Having a ton of my friends there, some who I haven't seen in a while, just added so much to the experience. I love heavy metal so much and I will love it more than anything else for the rest of my life.
Vektor: 10/10
Hellevate: 9/10
Alsatia: 8.5/10
Meat Shank: 8.5/10
Vektor:
Cosmic Cortex
Black Future
(long jam while David fixed his guitar)
Echoless Chamber
Tetrastructural Minds
Dark Nebula
Hunger For Violence
Deoxyribonucleic Acid
Accelerating Universe
Asteroid
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Upcoming show: VEKTOR!!!
If you don't know Vektor, then you're missing out on possibly the most electrifying and amazing band of the past few years. Their first album, Black Future, is my favorite thrash album of all time. Their new album, Outer Isolation, continues their amazing streak of perfect musical output. They'll be at the Riot Room on August 21st with three of the best local bands opening for them: Meatshank, Alsatia and Hellevate! This will be an unbelievable night of metal capped off by one of the best bands around today.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Upcoming AWESOME show: Kreator and Accept!
There are metal shows, then there are great metal shows, then there's THIS. Kreator returns to the area for the first time since (I think) 2005. The German thrash pioneers are co-headlining with legendary speed metal band Accept! At first it seems like an odd line-up, but it kinda makes sense! Opening is the VERY good doom/death/gothic band Swallow the Sun and amazing locals Hellevate! This will be the fastest show of the year.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Ghoul -- Merriam, KS -- October 15th, 2011
That old-school death/thrash style seriously makes for some of the best live music. You know, that Razorback sound. Along with Exhumed, Ghoul does that style fantastically and tonight was no exception. On a rare headlining date from the upcoming GWAR tour, the foursome from Creepsylvania brough all of its metal to Kansas. Literally! They brought out Killbot, a giant metal dude with a spiked fist and a pincer (or a clamp for Futurama fans) and would bonk Ghoul on the head and even "attacked" the audience. They also brought out Baron Samedi during "The Mark of Voodoo" who bit off the head of a chicken, but since the venue didn't have any plastic or anything down, no blood. And last but not least, Destructor made an appearance and also beat around Ghoul and the audience. But other than the silly costumes and stuff, Ghoul can actually rip. No filler, all killer. The sound was spot-on and the band were really on their A-Game, interacting with the crowd while they shred. If Impaled is kaput, I'm totally fine with Ghoul still being around. 10/10
Troglodyte opened and were vicious as ever. They played a few songs I hadn't heard in a while, so that was awesome! 9/10
Opening was a band called Hellevate and they surprised me. They were awesome. A thrash band but the vocalist could hit King Diamond highs. And they did when they covered "Welcome Home"! Sweet! 9/10
Ghoul:
1. The Lunatic Hour
2. Off With Their Heads
3. Transmission Zero
4. Splatterthrash
5. Rise, Killbot, Rise!
6. Brain Jerk
7. Destructor
8. Maniaxe
9. Mark of Voodoo
10. Blood Feast
11. Gutbucket Blues
----
12. As Your Casket Closes
Troglodyte included:
Don't Go In The Woods...
Skunk Ape Rape
Piece Of You
Mummified Yeti Hand
Fight For Your Life
Caught (On Super 8) (seriously one of the best songs ever)
They Walk Among Us
The Only Good Hippie...Is A Dead Hippie
Fossil
Hellevate included:
Welcome Home (King Diamond cover)
Troglodyte opened and were vicious as ever. They played a few songs I hadn't heard in a while, so that was awesome! 9/10
Opening was a band called Hellevate and they surprised me. They were awesome. A thrash band but the vocalist could hit King Diamond highs. And they did when they covered "Welcome Home"! Sweet! 9/10
Ghoul:
1. The Lunatic Hour
2. Off With Their Heads
3. Transmission Zero
4. Splatterthrash
5. Rise, Killbot, Rise!
6. Brain Jerk
7. Destructor
8. Maniaxe
9. Mark of Voodoo
10. Blood Feast
11. Gutbucket Blues
----
12. As Your Casket Closes
Troglodyte included:
Don't Go In The Woods...
Skunk Ape Rape
Piece Of You
Mummified Yeti Hand
Fight For Your Life
Caught (On Super 8) (seriously one of the best songs ever)
They Walk Among Us
The Only Good Hippie...Is A Dead Hippie
Fossil
Hellevate included:
Welcome Home (King Diamond cover)
Thursday, September 22, 2011
October preview: Ghoul
All the way from Creepsylvania, GHOUL is making a triumphant mark in Kansas City at the Aftershock on October 15th! You won't want to miss their unique take on splatterthrash and horrordeath metal! Opening is Troglodyte and Hellevate!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Havok -- Merriam, KS -- November 16th, 2010
Although they're from Denver, I really feel like Havok is a local band and hometown heroes. They always begin or end tours here and, like tonight, on a Tuesday night a ton of people show up who are big fans and sing the words and go crazy. It was my first time seeing a show at the Aftershock in Merriam, KS and the sound system wasn't too fantastic, but the stage was really big and it's an overall nice bar/grill! It was also my first time seeing Havok with two guitarists. They came earlier this year but had just lost their lead guitarist, so this was definitely better, and the second guitarist REALLY helped their sound. All the songs sounded great, but I was really impressed by the new song D.O.A. It just might be the best straight-up thrash song written in a long time! Afterburner was a highlight, but the ending Slayer covers were insane and the most fun I've had at a show in a while! One of the best performances this year by far!
Good ol' Vanlade opened right before Havok and they sounded great as always, although they only played with one guitarist this time. While every member of the band is fantastic on their own (especially the drums!) it sounds better with another guitar to even it out. No Judas Priest cover this time, but these dudes get better and better!
Meatshank sounded fantastic considering the spotty sound system at the Aftershock. The guitarist absolutely shred his face off and the bassist is still one of the most fun to watch. They played a good mix of old and new and were very well received by everyone.
Out of the two bands I hadn't heard before, Nefirum was far and away the most impressive. Looking at the band members, you'd think they had just come in from a day at school, but they played some vicious black metal with a tinges of thrash and a hint of death. Really, really impressive.
The first band of the night was Hellevate. They don't play the kind of metal I'm a huge fan of, but they did it really well and ended with a pretty sweet cover of Black Sabbath's namesake song. Evil, but nice!
Havok set:
Ivory Tower
Morbid Symmetry
Identity Theft
D.O.A.
Time Is Up
Fatal Intervention
To Hell
Melting The Mountain
Afterburner
Postmortem (Slayer cover)
Raining Blood (Slayer cover)
Havok: 10/10
Vanlade: 9/10
Meatshank: 8.5/10
Nefirum: 8/10
Hellevate: 7.5/10
Good ol' Vanlade opened right before Havok and they sounded great as always, although they only played with one guitarist this time. While every member of the band is fantastic on their own (especially the drums!) it sounds better with another guitar to even it out. No Judas Priest cover this time, but these dudes get better and better!
Meatshank sounded fantastic considering the spotty sound system at the Aftershock. The guitarist absolutely shred his face off and the bassist is still one of the most fun to watch. They played a good mix of old and new and were very well received by everyone.
Out of the two bands I hadn't heard before, Nefirum was far and away the most impressive. Looking at the band members, you'd think they had just come in from a day at school, but they played some vicious black metal with a tinges of thrash and a hint of death. Really, really impressive.
The first band of the night was Hellevate. They don't play the kind of metal I'm a huge fan of, but they did it really well and ended with a pretty sweet cover of Black Sabbath's namesake song. Evil, but nice!
Havok set:
Ivory Tower
Morbid Symmetry
Identity Theft
D.O.A.
Time Is Up
Fatal Intervention
To Hell
Melting The Mountain
Afterburner
Postmortem (Slayer cover)
Raining Blood (Slayer cover)
Havok: 10/10
Vanlade: 9/10
Meatshank: 8.5/10
Nefirum: 8/10
Hellevate: 7.5/10
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